ILR letter for absences from UK

[nay2023]

Hi all,

Situation:
- I completed +5 years as Skilled Worker, so qualify for ILR under 5-year route.
- I first came to UK 9 years ago under Tier4 Student visa.
- In the ILR form it asks when I first moved to the UK, I put the date when I came as a student.
- In the question asking to list all periods of absence from UK, it is unclear if it means the period relevant for the 5-year under Skilled Worker only, or if it is all absences since moving to UK.
- I have listed all absence since moving to UK, as this is what they will see in my passport.

Question:
- The next step is to provide letter *from employers* acknowledging any periods of absence. This I have got. What I don't have is a letter *from the university* for absences I had during time as a student. Is this a necessary document? Or is it enough to have letters from employers for past 5 years, since I'm applying under the 5-year Skilled Worker route?

Thanks in advance.

[zimba]

The application form is NOT a full disclosure, so you are only expected to provide the relevant information to your application and based on the relevant qualification period for your ILR. The date you put on the application is NOT important as your ILR eligibility is determined based on the period of lawful residence under the Skilled Worker/Tier 2 route, not what you say on the form.

You should ONLY declare absences of the last 5 years as the rest is not relevant to this application. Your Tier 4 visa period is NOT relevant at all. A letter of absence is ONLY needed from the current sponsor and there is no specific format.

Read: All you need to know about the sponsor letter for Skilled Worker route

[nay2023]

Thanks so much, that is what I thought, but the form language is a bit confusing!